A notice filed by state prosecutors cited multiple reasons under Florida law for the use of the death penalty, including that Mr Cruz, "knowingly created a great risk of death" to many people, that the shooting was, "especially heinous, atrocious or cruel," and it was committed in a "cold, calculated and premeditated manner."

After the filing, Mr Cruz's lawyers repeated their offer for him to plead guilty if prosecutors agreed to not pursue the death penalty.

Mr Cruz is due to appear in court in Fort Lauderdale this week where he will be formally asked to plead to the charges.

"We still stand ready to immediately plead guilty to 34 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole," Howard Finkelstein, a county public defender, said.

"If we are not allowed to do so tomorrow, we will stand mute to the charges."

Standing mute means the defendant will not plead either 'guilty' or 'not guilty' to the charges.

Mr Cruz's lawyers have said they have taken this approach to avoid upsetting survivors and families of victims with the "fiction" of a not guilty plea.

"We are not saying he is not guilty but we can't plead guilty while death is still on the table," Mr Finkelstein said.

The court is expected to enter a 'not guilty' plea on his behalf, Mr Finkelstein said.

In the wake of the shooting, Florida passed legislation restricting the sale of guns to under-21s, introducing a three-day waiting period for gun sales and allowing teachers to be armed.

World partners:

This service includes material from AAP, Agence France-Presse, APTN, BBC, CNN, Getty, Pacnews, Reuters and other agencies which is copyright and cannot be reproduced, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without written consent.